Long Overdue Love
by TheZombieExpert
Summary: Jaden's dreams leave her restless and she seeks out help. After council, she does her daily training with her best friend, Rosh Penin... But at the end of the day, he wants to know why she DID spare his life instead of killing him...


"_Jaden, Stop!" He shouted, trying to lure the hypnotizing pull that the Dark Side put on her. _

"_Don't get in my way, Kyle!" She snapped, drawing back from the scepter to meet his Light Side Eyes. "Jaden, I know you're angry, but it's no too late to renounce the Dark Side. Tavion and her cult has been stopped! We can end this... Together!" He pleaded. _

"_Oh no... This is just the beginning." The hatred was fuming in the Zabrak's eyes as she stood up. "Jaden, the lure of the Dark Side is strong, but it will ultimately destroy you! Fight it! Rosh resisted it! You can, too!" He wanted his student back... But Jaden was in no mood to take Kyle's nonsense! Rosh didn't have the courage she did! He was weak!_

"_You compare me to Rosh? Rosh was weak! He could not handle the Dark Side! He was too afraid to grasp it's power!" She hissed. "I can't let you do this, Jaden..." _

"_Then stop me... Master!" She threw down her green lightsaber and grasped the hilt of Tavion's red blade... The power within it was sending chills down her spine! It was a great and strong power! Kyle activated his blue lightsaber and swung for Jaden. She activated her new one and the colors crossed immediately, with fire and ice, light and dark, good and bad... _

Jaden sat up straight on her bed, panting and sweating... She looked around. She was in her room. She saw her best friend, Rosh... "Breathe, Jaden... It was just a dream." She wiped the sweat from her forehead. That was the worst dream she's had since that day... That day on Taspir III where she nearly lost her best friend, her master... And herself.

Jaden threw the blanket off her body and swung her legs over to one side of the bed and zipped up her black boots before exiting the room...

"The dreams don't stop, Master Skywalker. They just seem to get more... Graphic. More haunting. It's as if that's what really happened." Jaden was seeking her help on the wisest Jedi in the temple. "Jaden, you have potential, strength, and spirit. But you have something that Tavion never did." He said as she hung her head low. "What, a soul?" She joked. A smile crossed Luke's face.

"No... You were able to fight the dark side and come back to us. If that doesn't prove that you are a Jedi, I don't know what else to say... The dreams aren't real, Jaden. You're here with us. And that's the reality." He promised to her. She smiled up at him. "Thank you, Master Skywalker." And then she turned around to leave.

Jaden made her way to the courtyards and there, she sat down in front of the rising sun and closed her eyes... She felt the sun's heat on her face and a breeze in her loose hair. Biting down in her lip, she heard voices from inside the academy, realizing that most of the teachers and students had woken up... But she didn't move. Jaden stayed where she was. Refusing to stand up.

"Jaden! Has anyone seen Jaden? Jaden!" She heard her best friend, Rosh, cry out in the temple corridors. She rolled her eyes and stood up, brushing the dirt off her legs and leaned against a archway, smirking and crossing her arms. "Looking for me?" He whirled around. "There you are! I was thinking that you ran off on me. Duel in the courtyard, remember?" He said. "Right, I remember... Uh... five minutes?" She said. He nodded and she ran back down the corridors and up the temple halls, along with several staircases that were always a pain.

She opened the door with the controls and then tripped over something. Her hand wraps. She picked them up and wrapped the black leather strips around her knuckles. She took off her brownish-white robes and put on her normal wear which was a metal corset colored with purple and then her black boots with no heels.

She took her hair out of the braids and wrapped it in a tight bun behind her horns. She then ran out of the room, wrapping the usual leather strip around her head to keep her hair out of her face. Rubbing her wrists, she pulled on her black robe that fastened in the front and she clicked it closed. Running to the courtyard, she stopped and saw Rosh, twirling a silver hilt staff in the air. She smirked and walked to the circle, stopping Rosh by lifting the staff out of his hands with the Force and then gripping it in her own, frightening him a little. He then smirked.

"Nice Leather," He pointed to her forehead. "Nice observation." She said, twirling the staff herself and walking back over to lay it down with the others. Once down, she smirked. "You sure you can fight with that hunk of metal?" She had to tease him and grabbed his metal wrist. He yanked his hand back down. "Don't flatter yourself, Korr." He said, walking back to pick up his lightsaber. All Jaden did was snicker. "Are you ready?" He said, activating the blade and twirling it once on his wrist. "Are YOU?" She said, doing the same , opening one side of the double-bladed staff.

They both ran at each other and with one soft sweep, the blades struck. Only for a second before Jaden pushed on the hilt and sent Rosh back. Snickering, she swung at him again but he caught at it, this time he pushed her back and she fell over. His damned hand had an advantage. On her back, he swung the yellow blade down at her but she stopped it with her purple one, keeping him from cutting her skull in half.

She smiled. "You're losing, buddy." She said, before kicking him in the stomach and grabbing his shoulders, flinging him below her. But his reflexes were fast. Rosh linked his legs around Jaden's hips and thrusted himself backwards, making her hit the ground and get the wind knocked out of her. She coughed for a minute and then looked up at Rosh. "Who's losing now?" He smirked. "Show-off." She pushed herself up on her hands and coughed again. And again.

"Are you... OK?" He was actually getting worried because of her coughing. "I'm fine. Been through worse..." She rolled her eyes and stood up straight. A spell of dizziness stayed for a second before fading out. She smiled. "We done for today?" She asked, closing the blade of her lightsaber. Just then... He asked her something. "Why did you do it?" He said. She looked up, her green eyes taking in what he asked. "Did what?" She said.

"Why did you spare my life? You wanted to kill me, Jaden... I saw it." He said. They have avoided this subject for so long and I guess Rosh thought it was time to talk about it. Jaden breathed in, and lied. "Because I almost let my anger get into my soul. Take over my mind... I saw the monster I would become, Rosh... I would have killed you, and SO many others, just to get what I wanted... But I'm no Sith. I can't kill out of hatred." He breathed in.

"There was something else... Something else in your eyes when you surrendered... It was Love, wasn't it?" She froze and stared at him. "Love? Yes, I love you, Rosh... But that's kinda off the point." She said. "Not the love you'd have towards a friend or a family member, Jaden... The Love you'd have for a mate, or spouse... Admit it, Jaden... You love me." She was still frozen, unable to move or utter a word.

But she didn't want to come off as weak, let him get the best of her... So she approached him and stood face-to-face with him. Taking in a breath, she said it. "I love you, Rosh... God, I've tried not to, because it's forbidden, and I almost lost myself once... But I do... I love you, a lot." She finally said it. "See? That wasn't so hard, was it?" He said, putting a hand on her shoulder. She hen blinked. "You've known?"

"You don't exactly make it a puzzle, Jaden. Right from the moment you saved my life, I've loved you. And not a minute goes by, I don't think about you... I'm under your Jedi Trick, Jaden... Everyday, I think about what we could be, if we weren't Jedi. If we were normal, what would become of us?" He said. Jaden got the courage and grabbed his hands. "But, it's because of this Academy, that we met..."

"Yes, and even before we got here, you saved my butt! I took you for granted, I admit it... But I won't anymore... I promise." Jaden looked down, smiling to herself. Rosh tried to make eye contact with her but she bit her bottom lip and still looked down.

"Don't do that..." He said. She looked up, sliding her lip free. "Why?" She said, finally meeting his gaze... "Because that makes me want to kiss you, even more." He said. She smiled. "Then, do it already." It wasn't an order but persuasion... And it worked. Rosh put one hand to the back of her neck and she tilted her head up to him. He leaned ever so slowly and like that, there was an explosion of fire, passion, long overdue love.

Two Jedi, breaking the code right in the Massassi Temple, and couldn't care less. The kiss just became deeper and deeper until Jaden was on the ground and Rosh was wrecking her hair, but she knotted her fingers in his. Just as they broke apart for air, Jaden gasped. "It's about time." She smiled. Rosh chuckled and pressed his forehead against hers, not letting her get up. She nudged her nose against his and smiled.

"What does this mean?" She asked. Rosh smirked. "It means that you didn't lose yourself, Jaden... But found yourself. Again. And this time, you're with me."


End file.
